New Staff Profile: Ms. McPherson

Rylee Porter (11-2)

Masterman’s newest addition to the Spanish department, Mrs. McPherson, possesses an affinity for teaching that is rivaled by few. When asked what she enjoyed most about working at Masterman so far, she quickly replied, “I love the way that students really value the education.” She explained how her students remind her of when she was in high school. During her childhood, her family instilled in her the value of education from a very young age.

There is nothing that Mrs. McPherson values more than her family. “Family to me is number one,” she says. She grew up in Cuba, earned her bachelor’s degree from a recognized institution, and became a teacher there. However, when her family began to call her name from a thousand miles away, she decided to answer. “I moved to Philly from Cuba because my sister lived here, and we came for family reunification,” she said. After being a teacher in Cuba for eleven years, Mrs. McPherson knew that when she came to the United States she would continue with that path. “I did all the paperwork so that my degree would be valued here in the United States,” says Mrs. McPherson, and she even pursued her masters degree at Chestnut Hill College.

Photo courtesy of Rylee Porter (11-2)

Now that she works at Masterman, she is thrilled to be interacting with students and seeing that they are truly interested in learning the Spanish language. Mrs. McPherson uses her experiences as a teacher to make her a better mother to her two children, who are fifteen and sixteen years old. When asked what she would bring to a desert island if she could only bring one thing, she chose her family.

These family values are present in her classroom, helping to make every student in her class feel important and welcome. Mrs. McPherson is an excellent addition to the Masterman faculty, and students are lucky to be able to learn from such a kind person.